Martín La Roche Contreras
Description
Martín La Roche Contreras (b. 1988) is a visual artist based in Amsterdam. His works often find their starting points from existing collections of objects and memories, archives as modes of storytelling which he reassembles into installations, performances or publications.
Martín La Roche Contreras – 12. Extinguish (from the Quickcrossword Ch’aekkôri), 2016
1 of a series of 24 letterpress posters., collection (unintended)
Ch’aekkôri (or chaekgori) is a korean genre of still-life painting that can be translated as books and things. These were paintings that featured book collections along certain iconic objects, which related them to certain themes. They were made since half of the 18th century.
After an invitation by Calipso Press to make a project in the documentation center of Lugar a Dudas, Martin La Roche proposed to initiate a Ch'aekkôri. For this purpose the hints of the Quick crossword Nr 13.692 were suggested as new categories for reorganizing the library. 44 books were assigned to the new scheme and for communicating this, a group of posters were designed and printed by the artist at a local typesetting and printing workshop called 'La Linterna', that had one of the oldest street poster tradition in the city. All the wooden ‘clichés’ used to print the icons or shapes on the posters, came from the printing workshop's collection and were hand carved for previous commissions.
Gift: Martín La Roche Contreras
Musée Légitime Green Cap (Jockey Verde Del Museo Légitimo)
interrāre, al-dafn: Scattering and the counter Archive, collection (unintended)
green cap (97% cotton 3% spandex)
A museum inside a hat. Every artwork in the collection is small enough or immaterial to fit inside the hat. Everytime the artist does a selection of pieces, tuck them in the hat and goes for a walk carrying the pieces. If the moment arises the artist takes the hat off, shows the pieces and tell their stories one by one. In this case a whole museum building (the green cap) is emptied of pieces except the museum bussines card and given to this counter-archive.


